Military Censorship in Israel

The main source of legal restrictions of the press is provided by Art. 19 and Art. 20 of the press law. The former stipulates the right of the minister of internal affairs to warn the owner of the periodical, or the editor about a defined piece of press material which – in the minister’s opinion – can be dangerous for the public, or which contains false nformation or gossip that may provoke alarm or panic. By virtue of Art. 19 item 1, the minister is entitled to consider whether to issue an order to close the periodical if it proceeds with the publication of the incriminated material. Before the minister resorts to such restrictive measures, he or she can, but does not need to, warn the owner, the editor, or both of them. In Art. 19, item 2 the lawmaker defines further steps to be taken by the minister of internal affairs. The publication that – in the opinion of the head of the defense department – should not be released can be removed from the pages of the periodical for an appropriate period; its duration is to be determined by the minister as well. Israeli democracy faces a two-fold challenge with respect to military censorship. Firstly, the challenge of retaining and developing the spirit of liberalism, which is reflected by freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the right of citizens to be informed. Secondly, this challenge involves suppressing an authoritarian spirit, which frequently emerges to enable the efficient protection of national security